The Witcher 2 a challenging but rewarding dark-fantasy RPG (review)

The usual response whenever it’s announced that a hit PC game is getting a console port is to run for the hills. But there’s no need to worry this time.

The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings, sequel to the 2007 original PC-only game, loses nothing from the transition and is proof that the gap between PCs and consoles — both in terms of technical capability and the ability to challenge its audience with headier subject matter — is narrowing.

Fans of Game of Thrones should be at home in the dark-fantasy world created by Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski and brought to life by developer CD Projekt. At the center of it all is the witcher Geralt of Rivia. Witchers are humans trained since childhood to hunt and kill monsters, undergoing years of martial training and treatments with the alchemical equivalents of “the cream” and “the clear” to augment their abilities.

It’s quick from the get-go that this isn’t a children’s fantasy world, colorful though it may be. Dialogue is liberally peppered with profanity and mature topics — from race relations to sex to political ethics. Elves and dwarves are far from the jolly fairy-tale archetypes. One of the game’s early cutscenes (explicit, but tastefully done) finds Geralt in the arms of his main love interest, a comely sorceress and adviser to Foltest, king of Temeria and the man Geralt is tasked withprotecting. And there’s certainly no glossing over all the brutality. It’s far from crass or prurient and I applaud the developers for handling it in a way that is measured and thoughtful.

The Arena mode is one of the extras included in the Enhanced Edition. For PC players, the extras are free.

EXTRAS GALORE: The Enhanced Edition is no mere PC-to-console port. The graphical drop-off isn’t as drastic as expected, though there are spots where the console is racing to render textures. Installing the game’s two discs to the hard drive alleviates some of the technical hiccups. Also included are additional side missions not included in the original PC game, a combat tutorial and an Arena mode that pits you against increasingly difficult challenges. Other goodies in the Enhanced Edition include a handy quest guide, a foldout map of the game world and a bonus CD containing the sweeping musical score composed by Adam Skorupa and Krzysztof Wierzynkiewicz.

Navigating in-game menus is where the game exposes its PC roots. Moving through the inventory system requires a lot of rapid-fire pressing of the shoulder buttons. It’s not terribly counterintuitive, but it’s obvious the setup is more conducive for a keyboard and mouse.

Vernon Roche is the man responsible for capturing Geralt and has a major role in the game.

A JAM-PACKED BEGINNING MAY LOSE NOVICES: A hefty prologue sets the table for the game’s events, which begins with Geralt in prison. While incarcerated, Geralt recalls to his captor, Vernon Roche, the head of Foltest’s elite guard, the events leading up to his present situation. You play through these flashbacks, retracing Geralt’s footsteps and learning exactly how he was framed for Foltest’s murder. After escaping from prison, Geralt and the few allies who still believe in his innocence set out in search of the kingslayer, hoping to clear Geralt’s name while learning more about the conspiracy behind the regicide.

The early part of the game is quite the info dump, more so if you haven’t played the original Witcher , which was only released on PC, or read Sapkowski’s works or did both. A journal function keeps track of the various dramatis personae Geralt encounters, the locales he visits and
the lore of the world he lives in.

The world of Witcher 2 is gorgeous but also very dark and mature, taking on topics you don’t normally see in video games.

THE STORY IS REWARDING: If you can bear with it, what eventually materializes across the three acts (five, if you include the prologue and epilogue) is a carefully crafted plot of political intrigue, betrayal and personal vendettas all woven together to drive the game’s events. Running concurrently with the main plot is Geralt’s quest to recover his memory, which he lost after the events of the first Witcher. These flashbacks are told in slick visual-novel style cutscenes.

Combat is the beating heart of Witcher 2 and it often draws a lot of comparisons to Dark Souls, From Software’s epic action-RPG release. It’s certainly as fiendishly challenging and cerebral. Opponents cannot be defeated by sheer statistical or logistical brute force. The emphasis lies instead on readiness, positioning and guile; as it should, as Geralt is often outnumbered.

You can’t go through Witcher 2 mashing buttons. You’ll have to be prepared for foes and use guile to defeat them.

A CHALLENGE THAT’S COMPARABLE TO DARK SOULS: The bad guy with a huge shield requires a different set of tactics than the soldier wielding a two-handed greatsword. And a dragon, mandates an entirely new playbook altogether. The majority of combat is an intricate dance of dodging, parrying and flanking, creating openings for Geralt to strike or riposte with his own weapons.

Swords of steel are best used against humanoid opponents, while silver swords are suited for dispatching creatures. Geralt also has other tricks up his sleeve to even the odds. Before entering battle, Geralt can chug down a variety of helpful potions, elixirs too toxic for regular humans to handle. These grant him bonuses to his health regeneration, buffs to his strength or beefing up resistances to certain status effects.

Sure, Geralt has swords at his disposal but he can also use throwing knives, traps, bombs and magic to take out foes.

USE YOUR ARSENAL TO THE FULLEST: Preparing and applying a variety of oils augments his swords’ killing capabilities. Magic signs can damage or stun enemies, or even momentarily turn them against their cohorts. Throwing knives and various bombs round out Geralt’s arsenal and he’s going to need everything in his bag of tricks to survive some of the game’s more difficult confrontations.

When he’s not running around killing stuff, Geralt can pass the time completing quests for the people he meets. Local inns provide passing diversions — dice poker, arm wrestling and fistfighting. The Witcher 2 provides a refreshing contrast for RPG fans who are into powerleveling or “perfect” playthroughs.

Geralt can help people such as Brigida on his journey.

A BETTER WAY OF HANDLING MORALITY: Decisions aren’t defined by some binary rubric as they often are in other Western RPGs, such as the Mass Effect or Elder Scrolls series, nor are they tracked by the game as explicitly “good” or “bad” choices. One decision doesn’t necessarily confer a better quest reward than another and rarely are decisions cut and dried. For example, my decision to spare an elf from the gallows turns out to be a mistake when she reveals herself to be an insurgent spy right before sending a hit squad to take care of me.

On a grander scale, an early-game decision on who to align yourself with greatly shapes how the rest of the story plays out. Even within these two primary branching paths are more scenarios that further branch the narrative. It’s worth going through the game at least twice to see how wonderfully divergent these paths are.

This is the man you’re looking for in The Witcher 2.

A GREAT DECISION TO TAKE A CHANCE ON THE GAME: Late entrants into the Witcher universe can appreciate how vividly it comes to life without being penalized for their unfamiliarity. A plot rife with twists and turns and populated by a diverse cast of colorful characters provides the main draw while backed up with a challenging combat system.

I’m impressed that the idea to port Witcher 2 even took off. Some publishers would balk at the idea of taking such a complex game and trying to market it to a wider audience, calling it too big a risk to justify the move. But that gameble pays off: We’re rewarded with a game that rises above the cut-and-paste fare that dominates much of the
swords-and-sorcery genre.

There’s no shortage of top-notch RPGs for the Xbox 360 and The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings certainly fits the bill atop a rather lofty pantheon. It’s hard to discourage anyone from giving the game a try — unless they’re too young for it.